Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom do wonders dispelling the traditional view of pirates as ugly, groggy bastards with scurvy-ridden ankles and hooks for hands in Disney's current summer movie blockbuster. But while the Xbox video game hasn't received quite that level of hip beautification, it's still a polished RPG, full of life and virtual freedom.

But let's warn you now; after the 500th failed attempt to storm a ship, your appreciation of these finer aspects may be clouded. Those with attention spans shorter than it takes an 'Ooh Aarr me buckos" cliché to be wheeled out in a pirate-related video game review, disembark now. Thankfully, we at OXM are a persistent lot and those who share this quality might find some of the treasures the box promises. POTC is a trade-based RPG centred on the Archipelago Islands in the 18th century.

You must play as one Nathaniel Hawk, an anachronistically goateed man who soon gets entangled in wider political relationships and dodgy supernatural goings on. Spaniards, British and French all vie for your allegiance and attack your ship should you be seen to be playing for the other side.

Being an 18th-century pirate took a kind of patience we're not used to. Besides the fact your hulking ship took months to sail between islands you also had to pore over sea charts, monitor trade and smuggling prices, keep a beady patched eye on international relations, all the while in constant danger of having the ship kicked out of you by another pirate.

Developer Akella has built a world in which you can enjoy all these features. If you want to navigate the sea charts in real time and run endlessly between trade posts, back and forth to amass more money for ships and supplies, you can. But, problematically, we live in the 21st century, time is precious, so you won't.

That's why the developers have included a warp system. You need never learn the layout of any town, never speak to inane, wandering NPCs and never look at a compass. Just moor your ship and teleport to the tavern for recruiting, then the shop for trading, then the shipyard for repairs and finally the manor house for plot.

Hell, you can even warp right next to the pirate ship you're attacking during the sea fights. The upshot is much of the beautiful world the team's created need not have even been there. Frequently you'll be looking at loading screens more than luscious sea vistas. Why take the long route when you can teleport and make money at a much faster rate? Capitalism has a lot to answer for.

Dialogue is short and sweet with characterisation low on the agenda, so it takes a conscious decision to stick with the game in the hope that the other myriad elements will grab you. Which, in part, they do. The main action in your first hours will focus not on advancing the plot but on trying to earn some money. This is done in a number of ways. Firstly there's a bustling trade going on between the islands, and a quick look at the current trade charts will soon show you that buying low from one island and selling high, legally or contraband, to another will quickly reap rewards. If you can't be bothered with the stock market then just get strong and storm other ships looting and killing your way to wealth.

But there are elementary gameplay problems: the camera is at best unwieldy and the tough difficulty ensures saving regularly becomes annoyingly second nature. The game is harsh to the novice player and, even with sailing aids and a crew to back you, you'll die easily, frequently necessitating the dreaded restarts. Many players just won't bother.

However, the game is fit to burst with features boasting plentiful side stories and even competent dungeon-crawling elements. It sometimes feels rushed and the teleport cheating, while understandable, often undermines the feeling of world coherency. Nonetheless, fans of the genre and subject matter just might get hooked.

1. Immersive world
2. Beautiful visuals: particularly of ships at sea
3. Great trading elements

1. Wresting the unwieldy camera
2. Tough on newbies

Power
Good but occasionally jerky. More attention could have been paid to the on-ship battle animations.

Style
Typical wester RPG fare. Though neither innovative nor fresh, it does fit the subject matter.

Immersion
Annoying camera and first-person perspectives, but so much going on it's still easy to get hooked.

Lifespan
Work out the tasks and race through, but then you don't get to be a pirate, which is the best bit.

Summary
A lush RPG adventure with a swashbuckling storyline that thrills and frustrates in almost equal measure.